Chapter 1044
A dark hand came out through his back. A blood-soaked hand was clutching a still-pulsating heart.
“Kurgh….”
The dying man and the one watching his death locked eyes at close range. Eyes wide open as if in disbelief. The one other laughed coldly at the horrified face that recognized the death that was just around the corner.
Kwang!
The cultist, who kicked what could rightly be called a corpse, crushed the heart he was holding in his hand.
“Hahahahahaha! These filthy unbelievers!”
Fear has a peculiar property.
People tend to muster more courage when they are together than when they are alone. Isn’t there a clear difference between walking a dark road alone and walking it with others?
But what happens once fear begins to spread?
undefined
From then on, there is bound to be a greater fear than when alone. It didn’t take much time for the fear that started at the front to spread throughout the entire Black Ghost Fortress.
What was lacking wasn’t their martial prowess, but their state of mind.
The difference between Magyo, who kept the malice that continued from the horrors of a hundred years ago, and those who had forgotten all about it over time, was being revealed to the extreme right here and now.
“Second Coming of Heavenly Demon, Myriad Demon’s Advance. Second Coming of Heavenly Demon, Myriad Demon’s Advance. Second Coming of Heavenly Demon, Myriad Demon’s Advance.”
The mantra-like chanting digs into the ears.
The screams of someone dying and the sounds of mad laughter ring out at the same time. Along with unceasing curses and a chilling murderous intent.
Who could maintain their sanity throughout?
“Heu… ugh….”
“N- No. This….”
It’s collapsing.
undefined
The martial arts that they had built up over a long period of time, the mind that they had perfectly controlled, and the pride that came from the banner Black Ghost Fortress all collapsed like a rotten old tree in an instant.
What remained were merely humans petrified by fear, desperate to live.
“Euaaaak!”
Someone screamed and began to run away. Although it was only a small number of unexpected actions at first, the ripple effect was enormous.
The idea of ‘escape’ was introduced into the minds of those who couldn’t think of anything but fighting.
Those who could not resist the temptation turned away from the enemy. Even those who were holding their ground felt their blades dull, unable to do anything about it.
When the hungry wolves recognized their opponent’s weakness, they attacked the flock in front of them even more fiercely. To chew and swallow all the flesh without leaving a single piece behind.
Fear and despair settled on the blood-soaked earth.
“N- No….”
A Black Ghost Fortress elite stiffened like a statue as he faced the sight of his comrade being torn apart limb from limb. He knew he had to fight, he knew he had to resist, but he couldn’t move, as if his whole body was bound.
“Eu… uh…”
With eyes streaming with bloodlust, the cultist howled like a beast and swung his hand toward his head.
‘Die….’
At that moment.
Paaaaaang!
With a tremendous blast, the head of the charging cultist soared into the sky.
For a moment, it felt as if the world had come to a halt.
The elite of Black Ghost Fortress, who had been resigned to his impending death, looked up blankly at the head of the cultist rising in the air. The head spun in circles, spraying blood, and the face that could be seen at a glance was still full of raw pleasure.
Perhaps that demon cultist didn’t realize he was dying even in his last moments. Just as the one who had narrowly escaped death couldn’t comprehend the situation.
Tuk!
The head that had flown through the air hit the ground.
It is only one death that occurred on a battlefield where countless others died.
A small and trivial things.
But the aftermath was great.
“….”
The gaze of Black Ghost Fortress elite, who had barely saved his own life, drifted slightly downward. A little below his eye level, someone who did not exist a moment ago was standing with his back turned.
Black martial attire.
Hair tightly tied back.
And in one hand, a longsword emitting a white glow.
“Mount Hua….”
Before his mind could comprehend, his mouth opened first. Before the groan-like voice had even finished, the feet of the person in front of him moved again.
Paaaat!
He kicked off the ground and swung his sword like lightning.
“Ka-hat!”
Another cultist instinctively swung his arm. He intended to block the flying sword and rip through the attacker’s throat in one swift motion.
However, just before the arm and the sword could collide, the blade spun gracefully, deflecting the cultist’s arm. And soon then pierced the cultist’s neck like the talons of a hawk seizing its prey.
Paeaeaeng!
The body of the cultist, who had been calmly accepting the attacks of countless people, was cut off without even being able to resist. His head shot up into the air, and the rest of his body crumpled to the ground.
The battlefield froze.
Chung Myung’s mouth, which had blown off the heads of the two cultists in an instant, slowly parted.
“…Let me tell you, brats.”
Chung Myung slowly lifted his sword again.
“When dealing with Magyo….”
Paaaaat!
His sword began to emit brilliant sword energy. The red aura fluttered like an illusion, enveloping the cultists.
“Keuk!”
“T- This….”
As the storm of flower petals covered the entire area, the cultists instinctively tried to retreat. No matter how much they throw away their lives and rush at the enemy, they will not be able to charge blindly with sword energy flying at them, blocking their entire vision.
“Kaaaaaah!”
They retreated and flailed their arms. They intend to swat away the incoming plum blossom sword energy. However, the moment the hand filled with enormous demonic energy touched the flower petal, all the demonic energy vanished into thin air as if it had been an illusion in the first place.
‘Huh?’
Then.
Kwadeuk! Kwadeudeuk! Kwadeuk!
Seizing the moment, the sword energy swiftly pierced through the necks of the cultists.
“Keuhuk!”
Even if he looked down, he couldn’t see his neck. All the cultist could see was the blood gushing out from his neck.
Thud! Thud!
A cultist whose neck was pierced, and a cultist with a vivid plum blossom sword seal (??(劍印)) engraved on his forehead… They collapsed like rotten straw bales.
A supreme illusionary sword technique (??(幻劍)). It is a swordsmanship where the boundary between reality and illusion is exceedingly narrow.
Mount Hua’s swordsmanship, which has been degraded as being deviant and undervalued as being closer to Evil Sects because it is a swordsmanship that deceives and manipulates the opponent, was literally like a deadly poison to the cultists who suppressed their enemies with sheer force.
“Aim for the neck.”
Chung Myung said, twisting the corners of his mouth.
It was a chilling smile, different from the madness of the cultists, yet eerily similar in some aspects.
“Or smash their heads.”
Step.
Chung Myung took another step forward. His eyes fluttered with terrible murderous intent, anger, and heat that could only be described as bizarre.
And then, at that moment.
Kwaaaaaaa!
Something flew in with a terrifying sound and lodged itself in the cultist’s head.
Kwang!
And soon after, with a loud explosion, the cultist’s head burst apart.
‘Huh?’
The golden object that had struck swiftly spun back to where it came from.
Chak!
Jang Ilso caught the bracelet lightly with his hand and smirked bitterly.
“Head and neck… If I had known such information sooner, you should have told me. Always such a nasty disposition.”
Chung Myung ignored Jang Ilso’s words and moved forward.
The eyes of Black Ghost Fortress elites, who had been completely darkened with despair, regained their original light.
Head and neck.
Of course, it is not an easy area to aim for. No matter what, anyone would protect their head and neck thoroughly. However, there was a world of difference between having no way to defeat an opponent and having a difficult way to do so.
“This….”
However, the cultist’s position was completely different.
As they watched fellow believers dying before their eyes, an even more intense hatred began to appear on their faces.
“This filthy scum…”
Chung Myung smiled as he looked into their eyes.
“Yes. I like that look in your eyes.”
“….”
“Those eyes….”
Chung Myung’s eyes were bloodshot.
“I enjoy it the most when it’s colored by fear.”
Kwang!
Chung Myung rushed forward, smiling so brightly that it was grotesque. His sword was imbued with an intense red energy.
The sword that had once been perfected by beheading them was now targeting their necks again.
“Dieeee!”
The cultists also rushed at Chung Myung, screaming as if in a fit. They instinctively understood who the most dangerous entity was in this place.
“Second Coming of Heavenly Demon! Myriad Demon….”
“Shut up!”
Chung Myung cut off the approaching arm with one strike and thrust the sword into the mouth of the cultist who was shouting a mantra.
The cultist’s cervical vertebrae were instantly severed by that blow, and his body went limp. The sword that spun in his mouth was raised and split the cultist’s head in two.
Paaaat!
Before his sword was even fully drawn, Chung Myung’s feet moved first. With a single step that covered nearly a zhang, he plunged among the bewildered cultists and stomped heavily on the ground.
Chung Myung, who converted all the power he gained from advancing and pivot into his sword, rushed at incredible speed and swung at the cultist’s waist.
Kwagagak! Kwagagak!
It felt more like tearing than cutting.
The strong, rubber-like body of the cultist was unable to withstand the force of the incoming, and was cut off with a crunching sound.
Paaaaaang!
Soon, the upper body of the cultist, whose entire waist had been cut off, spun like a top. Chung Myung kicked away the crumbling lower body and spun around on the spot, scattering plum blossom sword energy in all directions.
Darkness that blanketed the sky. The heavily stained earth.
All cloaked in black robes from head to toe.
In this dark world, a plum blossom tree extended its branches. It is unnaturally extreme red, as if it has grown using the flowing blood as nourishment.
Sarararak!
The scattered plum blossom petals spun furiously like a whirlwind, sweeping through the cultists.
Kwadeuk! Kwadeuk! Kwadeudeuk!
Though the flower petal appears fragile, its power is by no means weak. It penetrated very easily through the bodies of the cultists who had blocked and neutralized numerous strong sword strikes and energy attacks.
“Keuuaaakkk!”
For the first time, a scream came from the lips of the cultists.
Their bodies never allow death easily. That’s why they couldn’t die easily even with dozens of holes pierced throughout their bodies. This meant they had to endure the excruciating pain from each wound in vivid detail.
Sword energy tears through flesh, cut tendons and grinds bones. Vivid pain tore through the minds of the cultists until they turned pale with agony.
Blood continued to spurt from the bodies of the cultists surrounding Chung Myung. The blood made the plum blossoms created by Chung Myung even darker.
A downpour of blood rain (??(血雨)).
In the midst of this, Chung Myung was the only one whose white teeth remained unstained by blood.
The hot, bloody smell stung his nose to the point that it was suffocating. The smell made Chung Myung readapt to it again. The unfamiliar sensations quickly returned, lingering at his fingertips gripping the sword.
Everything had changed. Yet, this sensation remained at his fingertips.
“…You shouldn’t have forgotten me.”
Chung Myung raised his head and laughed like a devil.
“Right?”
Chung Myung kicks the ground with a bizarre smile.
Those who are hunted and those who hunt.
It was the moment when that position was overturned.